


Accidents Happen

by CaptMazPrime



Category: Transformers - All Media Types, Transformers Generation One
Genre: Age Regression/De-Aging
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-21
Updated: 2016-02-21
Packaged: 2018-05-22 11:24:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,004
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6077565
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CaptMazPrime/pseuds/CaptMazPrime
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Praxian sparklings are a handful, to say the least. The Autobots learn that the hard way and Prowl is not amused. Not. One Bit.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Accidents Happen

**Author's Note:**

> I noticed a lack of deaged!Prowl fics, so I decided to write one of my own. I wrote this pretty late at night, so feel free to point out any errors if you catch any. (You can also find this on my account on ff.net)

Accidents are bound to happen, and that’s not surprising in the slightest. However some may argue that there is a fine line between acceptable accidents and intolerable ones. And right now Prowl was fairly certain this constituted as intolerable. Whatever he had done to deserve this--this bad karma, this unluckiness, this haplessness--he was ready to repent for it. Because this was absolutely and utterly terrible any way you looked at it.

“Wheeljack, please tell me this is reversible,” Optimus Prime said. He sounded tired and completely done with the situation.

“Well, yes...in theory…” Wheeljack trailed off, giving the Prime a sideways glance before looking back at the ground. “I’m working on a solution, don’t worry. I’m sure I can fix this.”

“Then you had better get to work right away.”

“Yes, sir.” Wheeljack scampered from the medbay without another word.

Optimus sighed. “And he’s alright, Ratchet?”

Ratchet lowered his scanner. “He’s perfectly fine as far as I can tell, Prime.” He turned back to the patient. “You’re not in any pain? You feel normal besides this obvious change?”

“Yes,” Prowl hissed. He was seething at the moment. Hearing his voice only made it worse. “I swear to Primus, when I’m back to normal Wheeljack is a dead mech.”

“Aw, come on, Prowl. Give the mech a break, he didn’t mean for this t’ happen,” Jazz pointed out to his (now tiny) friend.

Prowl only glared at him. It didn’t have much of an impact though because, let’s face it, sparkling glares just weren’t menacing. In fact, they were the opposite.

Jazz only smiled sheepishly back. “So whaddya suppose we do now?”

“We’ll wait for Wheeljack to fix this,” Optimus replied, shaking his helm. “There isn’t much else we can do. Despite his many mishaps, I trust Wheeljack’s ability to find a cure.”

“I hope you’re right,” Prowl muttered sullenly. He’d only been a sparkling for about 30 minutes and it was already unbearable.

///

It had been a series of unfortunate events that led up to this point. The day had been progressing as normal, well, as normal as a day in the life of the Autobots could be anyway. Wheeljack had been working on a stasis ray that could take Decepticons out in one shot which would give the Autobots the upper hand that they so desperately needed. While this was going on, Prowl, with Jazz’s aid, was conducting inspections in the labs.

“So, what’s this?” Jazz asked, pointing at the gun on Wheeljack’s table.

“The stasis ray I’ve been working on,” Wheeljack explained. “It’s nearly complete, I’m just working out some kinks. After that it will be ready for use in the field. Don’t get too close though. We wouldn’t want any accidents.”

Jazz nodded and backed away a bit, fully aware of Wheeljack’s and his weapons’ reputation.

“Well, everything looks to be in order here,” Prowl decided, giving the lab a thorough check. “No code violations… Yes. You’ve certainly better organized your space since the last inspection.”

“I took your suggestions to heart,” Wheeljack said, sarcasm lurking in his voice.

Prowl ignored it.

The inspection was done. They could move on to Perceptor’s lab. Surprisingly, nothing terrible had happened. It really was a miracle. However, this miracle was not to last.

As Prowl and Jazz turned to make their way out of the lab, Wheeljack went back to tinkering with the stasis ray. Just twist a few screws, reconnect a wire or two, and… The ray clicked. Once. Twice. Three times. Oh. Oh no. That could not be good.

Wheeljack raised his helm to give a warning when the ray whirred to life. A bright blast of energy shot out of the weapon. Right at the Autobot SiC.

The blast hit Prowl in the back so fast that he had no time to react. His vision blurred until it was impossible to make anything out. His audio receptors filled with static as well. A numb sensation spread out from the point of impact, reaching every part of his body. He fell to the ground and laid there twitching. He was dimly aware of Jazz yelling his name, but he couldn't seem to find the strength to respond. Suddenly the tactician was plunged into darkness, unable to see or hear anything. It only lasted for a moment though, as he slowly came back online.

“...owl! Prowl! Primus, say something!” Jazz cried. His friend knelt over him, a look of panic all over his faceplates. Wheeljack stood behind him looking horrified, but oddly curious.

Prowl groaned and shuttered his optics. “Slag… W-what happened…?” He frowned at the sound of his voice. It was…wrong. Something was definitely off here.

“Oh geez, man.” Jazz rubbed the back of his helm, his panic fading though he still looked worried.

“That was…unexpected,” Wheeljack stated. He looked back at the ray. “It wasn't supposed to do that. It definitely was not supposed to do that.”

“Do what?” Prowl asked sluggishly. Some of his systems had yet to come back online.

“Don't freak out, but…how do I put this…” Jazz paused for a moment. “Wheeljack’s stasis ray malfunctioned…”

“Obviously. And?”

“And you're a sparkling.”

Prowl was silent. He was having trouble processing those words. Had Jazz misspoke? He must have. Because there was no way that he was…that he was a…a sparkling!

“Prowl?” Jazz asked tentatively. “Are you alright? Please say something, bud.”

“A…sparkling. A sparkling,” the tactician murmured.

“Yeah.”

Wheeljack turned on his comm. :Uh, yeah, Ratchet.:

:What is it, Wheeljack?: the medic replied.

:We've got a problem down in my lab. There was a malfunction with that stasis ray and now Prowl…well uh, Prowl has a major issue.:

:I’ll be right there.: Ratchet quickly hung up.

“Hey Wheeljack?” Jazz called.

“Hm?”

“I think he's in shock.”

Prowl, now a sparkling lying on the ground near the lab door next to Jazz, seemed to be unresponsive.

“That's not good.”

“No it is not.”

Ratchet arrived almost immediately. The lab door slid open and he stepped in. “What happened--” He stopped when he saw Prowl. “What. In the Pit. Have you done?"

///

Jazz left the medbay with Prowl in his arms. He was attempting--and failing--to hide his amusement at the tactician's predicament. Prowl, needless to say, didn’t appreciate his attitude.

“I cannot believe this,” he growled. “This is slagging ridiculous!”

“Hey now, sparklings shouldn’t cuss,” Jazz quipped.

“Oh, shut it.” Prowl glared at him. “And, so you know, we won’t go around announcing this to the entirety of the Ark.” There were a number of reasons why that would spell disaster. The biggest was that Autobot communication, while heavily encrypted, was not unbreakable. If the Decepticons caught wind that the Autobot SiC was...not himself they might take the opportunity to attack. However the real reason, to Prowl anyway, was that this whole ordeal was a huge blow to his pride. Not that he would ever admit that.

“Yeah, it’s probably for the best if we keep things quiet,” Jazz agreed. He paused and shuffled a bit awkwardly. “Uh, where do ya wanna go?”

“My office.”

“Alright.” They made their way down the hall leading to Prowl’s office. Luckily no other Bots were around. The office doors slide open and Jazz stepped inside. He seemed unsure as to whether he should set Prowl down or not. He opted to just continue holding him as there wasn’t anywhere to put him anyway. “Is there a reason ya wanted to come here or…”

“To do work.” Prowl shifted in Jazz’s arms with the intent on being put down. Jazz only looked at him incredulously.

“Work? How do you plan on doin’ work like this?”

Prowl opened his mouth to retort but Jazz stopped him.

“Nuh-uh,” he tutted. “You’re in no condition t’ work, an’ you know it.”

Prowl crossed his small arms over his chest and huffed. “I have important work to do and being a sparkling doesn’t change that.”

Jazz sighed. “Look. How ‘bout you do work later?”

“And what do you suppose I do instead?”

“Just...chill?”

“I don’t ‘just chill.’”

“I’ve noticed. But now’s a good time to start, no?” Jazz nearly burst out laughing when he saw the expression on Prowl’s face. Pouting would be a good way to describe it. He didn’t say it out loud though. He would have been killed if he had. Sparkling or not, Prowl would always find a way.

The next few minutes passed by in an agonizing and awkward silence, with Prowl pouting and Jazz’s optics darting around in an effort to find something that could entertain his tiny friend. When he could come up with nothing he just sighed and looked back down.

“How ‘bout we…” He trailed off.

Prowl was slumped against his chest, optics drooping. Evidently he was fighting sleep. He seemed to be losing that fight though.

“Don’t stay awake on my part, Prowler,” Jazz said in a hushed tone.

Instead of replying Prowl just closed his optics and gave into recharge. Jazz smiled lightly. Maybe this situation wasn’t all that bad afterall.

///

 

:Jazz, Decepticons have been sighted at a nearby mine. You are to report there immediately. Coordinates will be sent to you. We need all the help we can get.: Optimus instructed over the comm.

:But what about Prowl, sir?: Jazz asked.

:You’ll have to pass him off to someone else. You are needed here.:

:Alright. I’ll be there as soon as possible, sir.: Jazz looked down at Prowl, who was still in recharge. “Great. Now what am I gonna do with you?”

Ratchet was currently occupied with Bumblebee. He had somehow managed to spring a massive leak, losing most of his energon in the process. Just about everyone was out in the field at the moment as well. The only Bots left in the Ark were the Dinobots and the twins. Dinobots and sparklings were definitely not a good mix. Then again, neither were the twins. But Sideswipe and Sunstreaker would have to do. Jazz didn’t want Prowl getting squashed or maimed and, as bad as those twin terrors were, they could probably handle a sparkling for a bit.

Jazz made his way down the hall to the rec room where the twins were bound to be. As he walked at a brisk pace, he felt Prowl shift in his arms. Looking down he saw that the sparkling was awake.

“Going somewhere…?” Prowl asked drowsily.

“Prime needs me in the field,” Jazz explained. “So you’re gonna have to hang with some other Bots.”

“Dare I ask who?” He rubbed his optics clumsily.

“Yeah… Sideswipe and Sunstreaker.”

Prowl was instantly more awake. “What?! No way! You’re joking, right? Please tell me you’re joking.”

Jazz shrugged. “Sorry, bud. It was them or the Dinobots. Thought you might wanna live through all this.”

“I’d take the Dinobots over the twin terrors any day! They can’t see me like this! Can you imagine what they’ll say?” Prowl was basically pleading now.

Another shrug. “It shouldn’t be for too long. And don’t worry. If you go missin’ we’ll know it was them.”

“That doesn’t help!”

It was too late for anymore protesting though. They had arrived at the rec room. As expected, Sideswipe and Sunstreaker were in the corner playing some first-person shooter. They didn’t bother looking up at the newcomers.

“You two have a job,” Jazz announced.

At this they turned.

“What?” Sunstreaker asked, looking for some clarification.

“Who’s that?” Sideswipe asked, pointing to Prowl.

“This would be Prowl,” Jazz replied.

Silence. Then the twins burst out laughing. Game completely forgotten, they staggered to their feet and came over.

“That--hahahaha--is Prowl?” Sideswipe asked between laughs.

“No way!” Sunstreaker looked ready to fall over.

Prowl was so angry that he might just explode. He was this close to letting the twins have it…

“Aw, come on. Stop pickin’ on ‘im,” Jazz chided. “Now, I gotta bolt.” He held out a simmering Prowl for them to take.

Sideswipe and Sunstreaker glanced at each other. Then Sideswipe extended his arms as well and took the sparkling. He could have sworn Prowl growled at him.

“I’ll be back as soon as possible, Prowler.” With that, Jazz ran out of the rec room.

It was quiet for a moment. The twins simply scrutinized the tiny bot in their hands. Prowl crossed his arms and looked away, not quite sure what to say. He was pretty close to just offlining himself at the moment. Anything else would be better than this.

“So…” Sideswipe started with a sly grin. “Havin’ fun, Prowl?”

“No,” Prowl answered simply.

“Lemme guess. This was Wheeljack’s work,” Sunstreaker guessed.

Prowl nodded.

“Huh. Good for him.” Sideswipe held Prowl up over his helm to get a better look at the miniaturized tactician. Prowl yelped in protest. “Who would’ve guessed he’d want to spend time with us, Sunny?”

“Mhm. Would never have expected that. ...And don’t call me Sunny.”

“It wasn’t my choice to make,” Prowl clarified.

Sunstreaker shrugged. He started making his way back to the video game console.

Sideswipe swung Prowl back down. The sparkling tightened his grip on the mech, optics growing wide. Sideswipe quirked an optic ridge at that. Prowl huffed but, oddly enough, did not loosen his grip. With a small, unnoticeable smirk, the lamborghini followed his brother back to the console.

They both plopped down in front of the screen. Sunstreaker picked up his control. Sideswipe, after depositing Prowl in his lap, did the same. They quickly went back to shooting the enemies on-screen.

Prowl sat as rigid as possible in Sideswipe’s lap. He couldn’t think of a situation more awkward than this. When he caught sight of Sunstreaker giving him discreet glances he simply turned away and tried to remain calm. It wasn’t working very well.

Sideswipe, finally fed up with all the squirming, threw down his controller and looked down at the sparkling. “Problem?”

“Off.”

“Pardon?”

“Off.” Prowl gave a small whine of annoyance. “I don’t like being on your lap.”

“Sucks to be you then.”

Another noise signifying unhappiness.

“I’d let him down, Sideswipe. He looks about ready to claw your optics out,” Sunstreaker pointed out.

“Oh yeah. Tiny sparklings like him are incredibly dangerous.”

Sunstreaker snickered.

Prowl’s doorwings twitched in irritation. “Sideswipe…”

“You’re breaking my spark, Prowl,” Sideswipe said in mock sorrow. However he decided to relent to the tactician’s request, placing him on the ground.

The twins looked at each other before shrugging and going back to the game.

Now on the floor, and much happier at that, Prowl glanced around the rec room. He hadn’t really noticed it before, but everything seemed so much bigger. That was to be expected as he was now way smaller than usual, but it was still a bit disconcerting. He definitely did not like things from this perspective, that was for sure.

With the twins completely absorbed in their game, Prowl found himself growing incredibly bored. Sparklings were curious by nature. They were known to explore and get into things that they generally were not supposed to. And Prowl, as hard as he tried, just could not seem to sit still. Usually the SiC could stay still for hours on end, as he tended to get absorbed in his work and stay hunched over his desk all night. But he was beginning to realize that being in a sparkling body made him susceptible to sparkling tendencies. Perfect.

Since Sideswipe and Sunstreaker were obviously preoccupied, Prowl busied himself with attempting to stand up...something that was much harder than it should have been. He pushed himself up off the floor with his arms, then leaned on the couch the twins were sitting on. His legs trembled underneath him. He slowly moved his hands away from the couch and took one step forward...only to find himself plummeting face first toward the ground.

Suddenly a black hand appeared out of nowhere to catch him.

“Geez Prowl! Are you trying to break your face or something?” Sideswipe asked. If Prowl didn’t know any better, he’d say the lamborghini sounded worried. But when did that mech ever worry about anything--especially Prowl.

“Sorry,” Prowl mumbled.

Sideswipe gently put him back down. “Need lessons on walking?”

“Ha ha, very funny.”

“No, I’m serious.” The red mech jumped up from his seat. Sunstreaker watched him in amusement. “You just put one leg in front of another. Like this.” Sideswipe began to walk in an incredibly slow and exaggerated fashion.

Prowl rolled his optics. However, oddly enough, he copied Sideswipe’s movements. He took a few unsteady steps before stopping to regain his balance.

“There you go!” Sideswipe encouraged, putting a hand on his hip.

Another few steps. A couple more. And just when it seemed like he was getting the hang of walking again, Prowl tripped over his own pedes. He flung his arms out to catch something before he hit the ground. He did manage to break his fall. It just so happened that the thing he grabbed was Sunstreaker’s leg. Some of his yellow paint was scratched and smudged.

Prowl and Sideswipe froze, both of them aware at how badly Sunstreaker reacted when his appearance was messed up in the slightest. Before either one could say anything though Sunstreaker just leaned down and picked Prowl up, placing him on the couch.

“I think that’s enough walking for now,” he said with a smirk.

“Oh. Okay,” Prowl said in a small voice.

“Good job relearning basic functions.” Sideswipe flopped down next to them, causing Prowl to bounce a bit in his seat.

“Hmph.”

“You’re welcome.”

“I…I appreciate your help.”

The twins just smiled at each other.

///

The mission ended up taking longer than Jazz expected. It had originally been speculated that the Decepticons had attacked the mine to take its resources but, as it turns out, they were actually just luring the Autobots away from some oil reserves. Once the reserves were left almost completely unprotected, the Cons swooped in and overpowered the remaining Bots stationed there. Luckily they were able to send out an emergency transmission to call for backup. They managed to fend off the Cons, but it certainly had not been an easy task.

Now Jazz was back on the Ark. He was headed straight for the rec room where he had left Prowl. Hopefully the twins had left him in one piece.

Stepping into the room, he looked around. Sure enough, there were Sideswipe, Sunstreaker, and Prowl. And, surprisingly, they weren't tearing each other to pieces.

Sideswipe and Sunstreaker sat on the couch playing a different game than before. Prowl sat between them, occasionally pointing at the screen and making some remark about the game. The twins would simply nod and continue on playing.

“Having fun?” Jazz asked, walking over to them.

Prowl peeked over the back of the couch at his friend and Sunstreaker merely waved his hand in acknowledgement.

“Prowl ain't half bad when he's a sparkling,” Sideswipe admitted.

“Hey!” Prowl exclaimed indignantly.

Jazz chuckled and leaned on the couch. “These guys didn't cause ya any grief, did they Prowl?”

Prowl murmured something that sounded like ‘No they did not.’

“Good. I was ready t’ lock ‘em in the brig for ya.”

“That's not much of a thanks,” Sunstreaker grumbled.

“Hey, can't blame a mech for being paranoid.” Jazz shrugged.

Prowl suppressed a yawn and ran a hand over his faceplates.

“Looks like someone's tired.” Jazz scooped him up off the couch. Other than a quiet whine, Prowl didn't protest. “I'll see you two later then.”

“See ya, Jazz,” Sideswipe said.

Sunstreaker waved him off again.

After making sure Prowl was in a comfortable position, Jazz left the rec room and headed to his own quarters.

///

Prowl had been in recharge for sometime--sparklings obviously needed more rest than full grown mechs. When he finally came back online, he saw Jazz sitting next to him on the berth reading a datapad. Before he could say something, his tanks rumbled. He sat up, slightly embarrassed by the noise.

“Hungry, huh?” Jazz said. “Guess it’s been awhile since you last refueled.” He stood up from the berth and set down his datapad. “I’ll get you some energon.”

“Alright. Thank you, Jazz.”

Jazz nodded. “Be back soon.” He left his quarters, closing the door behind him.

Prowl sat on the berth alone, unsure of what to do. He decided it would be best if he just stayed put and waited for Jazz to return. He doubted he would be able to get off the berth on his own anyway. Unfortunately for him, Jazz had left at the worst possible time.

The alarm began to blare overhead. That couldn’t be good.

Prowl frowned. It probably wasn’t anything serious. The most likely scenario was that Red Alert had pulled a false alarm. He was known to do that from time to time. Or maybe it was just a drill. That would be unlikely though, as Prowl himself helped schedule drills and he could not recall scheduling one for today.

There were footsteps in the hall. The door slid open. While he had closed it, Jazz obviously had not locked it.

“Jazz?” Prowl questioned hopefully.

A metallic growl was the only response. That definitely was not Jazz. No, it was Ravage. How he had gotten this far into the Autobot base was a mystery to Prowl, but he didn’t have time to dwell on it. There was a Decepticon right in front of him and he had no way to defend himself.

Scrambling as far back as he could, Prowl attempted to make himself smaller, though he wasn’t sure how that would help. Ravage jumped up onto the berth and stared at the small Autobot sparkling. As he slunk forward, Prowl leaned back farther. This was to no avail though, as the Decepticon was undeterred.

Prowl was never one to go down without a fight though, sparkling or not. He lashed out at the Con, hitting him in the snout. Ravage snarled and swatted back, scratching Prowl’s faceplate. He lunged forward and sunk his fangs into Prowl’s doorwings, dragging him off the berth and onto the floor. Prowl cried out in pain and winced.

Ravage bolted from the room with the sparkling Bot in his jaws. There were a multitude of loud footsteps stampeding down the hall to the right.

“He went this way!” someone yelled as the footsteps got closer.

Prowl was about to yell for help when Ravage tightened his grip, silently persuading him not to do so. He ran faster to avoid the Autobots coming their way.

Prowl struggled to free himself as they darted down the halls. Sparklings weren’t very strong though, as he didn’t do much. Before he knew it the entrance to the Ark was coming into view. If Ravage got too far from the Ark it was possible that the Autobots would never be able to rescue Prowl--at least not until it was too late.

A barrage of gunfire came from behind them. Ravage expertly dodged each shot, making sure to keep his grip on the sparkling. With all the quick motions Prowl was becoming dizzy, causing him to lose all sense of direction. He could make out the angry and panicked yells of the Autobots but they were beginning to fade. That meant they were getting away. Definitely not good.

Ravage sprang from the Ark and took cover in the rocky terrain. Now all he had to do was lose the Autobots completely.

As the cybercat carried him off and away from his comrades, Prowl heard Jazz calling out his name. He yelled back, but it was already too late.

///

“We need to round up as many Bots as we can and head out there!” Jazz exclaimed, pacing in front of Optimus. They had gathered in the command center to sort out what to do now that Prowl had been taken by the Decepticons. “Prime, Prowl can’t defend ‘imself in his state! The Cons’ll tear him apart!”

“Now Jazz, you of all Bots should know how precarious this situation is,” Optimus said in an attempt to calm the mech down. But he was obviously distraught by the turn of events as well. “What I would like to know, is how Ravage managed to get so deep into our base?”

“Red Alert is looking into it,” Wheeljack told him.

“After looking our files over, it would seem Ravage did not obtain any vital information,” Optimus continued. “So his main goal was to get to Prowl.”

“But how did the Cons even know about the situation?” Ratchet asked. Not many Bots knew about what had happened to the SiC in the first place.

“Slag. Wheeljack ‘n I. We were discussin’ his progress on figuring out a way to fix Prowl while I was on the way to the mine.” Jazz’s hand curled into a fist. “Fraggit. The Cons must’ve intercepted our transmission.”

“There’s no time to dwell on that,” Optimus said. “We must think of a plan to reach Prowl as soon as possible.”

“I’m going!” Jazz said immediately.

“Us too!” Sideswipe and Sunstreaker stepped forward. They received a few questioning looks, but no one argued with them. The sparkling was in trouble and they knew they had to help.

“Ratchet, you should go as well. This should be a covert operation with as few mechs involved as possible, but Prowl may be in need of immediate medical attention,” Prime said. Ratchet nodded.

“I hope we’re not too late,” Jazz murmured, mostly to himself.

///

Prowl was unhappy. That was the mild way to put it. First he gets turned into a sparkling. Next Sideswipe and Sunstreaker laugh their afts off at the sight of him. Then Ravage breaks into the Ark and captures him. And now the Decepticons were passing him around like some sort of odd spectacle. So yeah, unhappy was putting it very, very mildly.

“HAHAHAHAHA!” Starscream shrieked with laughter. He held Prowl out in front of him. “Would you look at this! Who would’ve guessed this was the Autobot second in command?” He seemed to be thoroughly enjoying himself.

Numerous hands reached out to grab Prowl. He squirmed uncomfortably in their grasp. These Cons were way worse than the twin terrors.

Soundwave plucked him from the group, holding him away from the others--Prowl was appreciative of that. The emotionless Con peered down at him. His cassettes moved in closer, trying to get a good look as they had never seen a sparkling before.

“What do we have here?” Prowl flinched at the sound of Megatron’s voice. The warlord marched up to his troops, awaiting an answer.

“An Autobot, my lord,” Starscream said. “A sparkling Autobot.”

“Is that so?” Megatron took Prowl from Soundwave’s arms. He looked extremely amused. “I think I recognize this one actually…”

“Designation: Prowl,” Soundwave said.

“Right.” Megatron grinned and Prowl couldn’t help but tremble under his strong gaze--as it turns out sparklings were not the bravest of creatures either. “So, why would Prime’s second in command be a sparkling of all things?”

Prowl remained silent. He might not have a way to escape--yet--but by no means would he be cooperative with the Decepticons.

“Well?” Megatron shook the tactician a bit. Prowl latched onto his arm, not keen on falling to the ground. Megatron rolled his optics and tossed the sparkling to Starscream. “See what information you can extract from that.”

“And after that?” Starscream inquired.

“Dispose of it.”

///

The Decepticons had an encampment near the mine where the last battle took place. Jazz was fairly certain that was where Prowl would be. He, Sideswipe, Sunstreaker, and Ratchet were crouched in the bushes on the edge of the encampment.

“Ratchet, you stay here and provide support if we get in over our heads,” Jazz said in a hushed tone. “The rest of us will sneak in and find Prowl. Hopefully we can get in and out without alerting the Cons.”

“You sure he’s here?” Sunstreaker asked.

Jazz didn’t answer. If Prowl wasn’t actually at this encampment then they would be back to square one.

“He’d better be here--for the Con’s sake,” Sideswipe growled.

“Let’s move out.” Jazz slunk out of the bushes, followed by Sideswipe and Sunstreaker. They easily evaded the Decepticon sentries, making their way deeper inside.

“Hold him still.” That was Starscream’s voice. “A processor scan should give us what we need. ...I said hold him still!”

The Autobots looked in the direction the voice had come from. They didn’t like what they saw.

A couple of Cons had Prowl tightly in their grasp. Starscream stood in front of them, a dangerous looking device in his hand. Prowl was struggling to free himself, but it didn’t look like he was succeeding. His optics shone with fear.

Normally Jazz could keep his cool in situation like this. He had learned that sometimes you had to take a deep breath and think things through. However, at the sight of his helpless friend suffering at the hands of the Decepticons, Jazz couldn’t help but leap into action in a blind rage. The twins had no choice but to follow his lead.

So much for not alerting the Decepticons of their presence.

“Autobots!” Starscream yelped. He dropped the device and pointed his null rays at them. Jazz dodged the blasts, going straight for Prowl. Sideswipe and Sunstreaker flanked him, taking out the Cons that were holding the tactician. Jazz grabbed him and help him close to his chest to make sure no stray blasts hit the sparkling.

“It’s alright Prowl,” Jazz told the whimpering sparkling. “We’re getting you outta here.”

The twins jumped Starscream, knocking the Seeker to the ground. As more Decepticons flooded the area, they ran from the scene to where Ratchet was waiting for them.

Not wasting any time, Ratchet took Prowl from Jazz, quickly looking the sparkling over. Seeing no life threatening issues, the medic deemed it alright to move him. With that the small team of Autobots fled the area.

///

“Besides a few minor injures, he is fully functional,” Ratchet decided back at the medbay after giving Prowl a thorough examination. The sparkling had been incredibly quiet the whole time, which was a bit worrisome but also completely understandable given what had just occurred.

“I should’ve never talked ‘bout all this over the airwaves.” Jazz shook his helm. He blamed himself for what had happened.

“We’ll need to be more careful in the future,” Optimus reprimanded. “We were able to rescue Prowl however, so I suppose the consequences were not too severe.”

“Doesn’t change the fact that Prowl was put in serious danger--not to mention all the sensitive information in his processor,” Ratchet grumbled. The medic picked Prowl up and deposited him in Jazz’s hands. “There was a large amount of stimulus on his processor, so he is in shock at the moment. But he should become responsive soon. If his condition does not change within the hour though, bring him back to medbay.”

Jazz nodded and left the medbay, holding the sparkling close to his chest.

He could barely process how close a call that had been. He had not left Prowl alone for very long, but in that short span time his friend had been taken hostage by a Decepticon intruder. When the alarms first went off he had taken off running back to his quarters. Red Alert had detected Decepticon activity from within the base, but he couldn’t pinpoint the exact location. Jazz wasn’t taking any chances though.

But he’d been too late. By the time he had made his way back to the room the door was wide open and Prowl was gone. It hadn’t been a pleasant experience to say the least.

With no clear destination in mind, Jazz wandered down the halls of the Ark. He looked down when he heard Prowl click.

“Jazz?” the tactician murmured.

“Hey man,” Jazz greeted softly. “You alright?”

“I’ve been better.” Prowl shifted in Jazz’s arms. He shuttered his optics and looked around. “The Decepticons did not obtain anything important, did they?”

“Besides you? They didn’t.” Jazz leaned back against the wall and crossed his legs. “Prowl, I should’ve never left ya alone like that. It’s all my fault the Cons nabbed ya."

“Don’t apologize, Jazz. The only ones at fault are the Decepticons."

“I still feel guilty though.:

“Well you shouldn’t.”

:Jazz!: Wheeljack’s voice came through the comm.

:Somethin’ wrong?: Jazz asked.

:Sideswipe told me what happened to Prowl. Is he alright?:

:Yeah, he’s fine.:

:Phew. On that note, can you bring him down to my lab? I think I’ve figured this whole thing out!:

:We’ll be right there.: Jazz looked at Prowl excitedly. “I think you’re about to go back to normal, bud.”

“Finally,” Prowl said sounding immensely relieved.

The two Bots proceeded to make their way to Wheeljack’s lab. After Ravage’s infiltration and Prowl’s capture, word of Prowl’s condition had spread like wildfire throughout the Ark. Everyone they passed slowed down, gazes lingering on the pair and trying to get a good look at the sparking SiC. Once they entered the lab, Prowl let out a sigh of relief, happy to be away from the prying looks.

Wheeljack spun around and waved them over. “It took some work, but I managed to rewire the stasis ray to reverse the process.”

“Then let’s get on with it,” Prowl huffed. He was tired of being a sparkling and the sooner this was all over the better.

“Right, right. Jazz, just set him down on the table.”

Jazz did as he was told. He gave Prowl a thumbs up and stepped back, not wanting to get shot by the (previously unreliable) gun.

Wheeljack powered up the ray and pointed it at Prowl. “I hope this works.” Then the ray went off, hitting Prowl squarely in the chest. Once again his vision blurred and his audio receptors filled with static. His body went numb.

When his optics came back online, Jazz was leaning over him like before. But this time his friend was not panicked. He gave Prowl a reassuring grin.

“Feelin’ better?” he asked.

Prowl sat up. After looking at his body he deduced that he was back to normal now. “Very.” He got up from the table and stretched. It felt much better to be normal size again.

“I was worried it might not work,” Wheeljack admitted sheepishly.

“Be very glad it did,” Prowl stated. “You pass your inspection Wheeljack, but keep those weapons of yours in check. Next time they might do something worse than turn a superior officer into a sparkling.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

Jazz slung an arm around his friend. “Now that you’re back to normal we can get back to business as usual. How ‘bout we get a drink?”

Usually Prowl wasn’t much of a drinker. But after everything he had just gone through, he’d say now was an acceptable time to have a long drink of high grade.

///

Things at the Ark were now back to normal. Prowl liked it that way. He was sitting in his office catching up on the work he had gotten behind on due to Jazz’s insistence on his inability to do anything when he was a sparkling.

There was a knock at his door.

“Come in,” he said. Sideswipe and Sunstreaker barged their way into the room. He sighed and set down a datapad. “Do you two need something?”

“We just wanted to congratulate you on growing up,” Sunstreaker told the SiC.

“Need help learning to walk again?” Sideswipe added.

Prowl narrowed his optics. “If either of you bring up the events of the past few days ever again I will make sure you both have triple shifts until you go offline."

The twins grinned. They obviously did not intend to listen to Prowl. But then again, Prowl couldn’t think of a time when they ever did.


End file.
